o their undeviating course, but few Englishmen ever succeed
in killing them.

The ostrich begins to lay her eggs before she has fixed on a spot for a
nest, which is only a hollow a few inches deep in the sand, and about a
yard in diameter. Solitary eggs, named by the Bechuanas "lesetla", are
thus found lying forsaken all over the country, and become a prey to the
jackal. She seems averse to risking a spot for a nest, and often lays
her eggs in that of another ostrich, so that as many as forty-five
have been found in one nest. Some eggs contain small concretions of the
matter which forms the shell, as occurs also in the egg of the common
fowl: this has given rise to the idea of stones in the eggs. Both male
and female assist in the incubations; but the numbers of females being
always greatest, it is probable that cases occur in which the females
have the entire charge. Several eggs lie out of the nest, and are
thought to be intended as food for the first of the newly-hatched brood
till the rest come out and enable the whole to start in quest of food.
I have several times seen newly-hatched young in charge of the cock,
who made a very good attempt at appearing lame in the plover fashion,
in order to draw off the attention of pursuers. The young squat down
and remain immovable when too small to run far, but attain a wonderful
degree of speed when about the size of common fowls. It can not be
asserted that ostriches are polygamous, though they often appear to
be so. When caught they are easily tamed, but are of no use in their
domesticated state.

The egg is possessed of very great vital power. One kept in a room
during more than three months, in a temperature about 60 Deg., when
broken was found to have a partially-developed live chick in it. The
Bushmen carefully avoid touching the eggs, or leaving marks of human
feet near them, when they find a nest. They go up the wind to the
spot, and with a long stick remove some of them occasionally, and, by
preventing any suspicion, keep the hen laying on for months, as we do
with fowls. The eggs have a strong, disagreeable flavor, which only the
keen appetite of the Desert can reconcile one to. The Hottentots use
their trowsers to carry home the twenty or twenty-five eggs usually
found in a nest; and it has happened that an Englishman, intending to
imitate this knowing dodge, comes to the wagons with blistered legs,
and, after great toil, finds all the eggs uneatable, from having